Protest demonstrations were held against the unabated long loadshedding hours in various cities of the Punjab, including Lahore and Faisalabad, on Tuesday.
Other cities and towns where protest rallies were taken out included Pakpattan, Mian Channu, Garh Maraja, Shorkot, Khushab, Sheikhupura, Sargodha, Chakwal, Kot Moman, Darya Khan, Jhang, Malakwal, etc.
In Shahdara area of Lahore, people took out a rally, blocked the GT Road for a long time and raised slogans against the government to protest long hours of power outages. Work at industries and business centres in Faisalabad and other cities, and practical exams in educational institutions of Sheikhupura were badly affected due to the long hours of unannounced power outages. The factory owners reportedly launched a civil disobedience movement in Faisalabad against loadshedding and increase in tariff of electricity. A large number of factory owners took out a rally, stages a sit-in in front of Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco), raised slogans against the government and torched their electricity bills in protest. They said that the decisions taken at the energy conference and announced by the prime minister have not been implemented, despite lapse of two weeks. The protest rally was led by Pakistan Textile Exporters Association Chairman Rana Arif Tauseef.
After failure of their talks with the government on ending the fuel price adjustment and increase of Rs1.67 per unit in power rates, Faisalabad industrialists announced not to pay their electricity bills. They said they would not allow disconnection of their electricity meters also.
In Mian Channu, a complete shutter-down strike was observed in the call of traders union.
Traders in Pakpattan also observed a complete strike against 20-hour unscheduled electricity loadshedding in the city on Tuesday. The protesters marched through Thana Bazaar, Shrine Road, Fawara Chowk, Old Town Hall, Sahiwal Road, Nagina Chowk, College Road, Mandi Bazaar and Bijli Chowk. They were chanting slogans against the government and Wapda.
In Sheikhupura, computer practical exams were badly affected at examination centres. Due to long hours of loadshedding, no practical exams could be held and later on teacher had to give marks to students with taking exams.
via Faisalabad traders launch civil disobedience movement – thenews.com.pk.